


A Tale of Fantasy

by KireinaAme



Category: Free!
Genre: Adventure, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Drabble Collection, Fluff, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-10
Updated: 2016-12-27
Packaged: 2018-07-22 16:18:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 4,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7445701
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KireinaAme/pseuds/KireinaAme
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In a realm of kingdoms, fantastical creatures, and magic, a couple of friends set out on a journey. <br/>(Drabble collection)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Path

**Author's Note:**

> I initially thought of making this a long one-shot but then decided against taking that much time away from "Tech Support." Instead this will be a chapter-story built on drabbles that I can work on between chapters for other stories I'm focusing on. Originally posted on tumblr, I liked them enough to share them on AO3! I hope the strange format doesn't detract from the story for anyone.

“Rin, are you sure this is the right direction?” Makoto huffed, his feet nearly dragging in the fallen leaves of the well-worn path that he felt he had been on for days.

There was no road laid out in brick or stone, no sign that any other person had passed this way in years. Only the bare ground where the grass had worn away over time from being so well trodden stretched ahead of them as it wound and disappeared behind trees. The path of naked earth cut through a dense, lush forest of deep emerald and stood out as the only clearing that they had come across in hours. Makoto wasn’t sure how Rin could possibly tell where they were, let alone where they were going, when all he could see around him was thick brush and tall trees with swirling trunks.

But he had trusted his friend and followed him without complaint. Makoto hadn’t meant to sound doubtful of his friend’s sense of direction but his legs were beyond sore and his body weighed down by what armor remained on his body after their last skirmish. With their horses long since scattered to who knew where in their desire to flee the violence, he and his elven friend had only their own feet to carry them to their destination. And, really, Makoto just needed a rest.

Rin, however, still managed to look fresh somehow. Even the subtle tearing at the hems of his tight leather pants or the slash down one arm of his cotton tunic barely tarnished the image of grace and natural beauty of the redheaded _To’tsurii_ elf. Makoto knew he didn’t look even half as civilized as Rin managed to and felt a touch of envy.

“Am I sure?” Rin scoffed with a click of his tongue, not even gracing Makoto with a glance of his sharp crimson eyes. “Of course I’m sure. Did you stop trusting me to get you there all of a sudden?”

Makoto shook his head vehemently, his eyes wide as he realized his words sounded almost accusatory. “Oh no, no! Nothing like that!”

Chuckling with a feeling of unease, his arm instinctually lifted to his face to scratch at his cheek, a nervous habit he had never been able to break. However, when he brought his glove up close enough his eyes caught the dark, rust-colored tint of dried blood and mud covering the material. He lowered his hand back down to his side. Perhaps he could break the habit after all.

“Well, the sooner we find water, the better,” he mumbled.

“Trust me, Makoto. There will be plenty of water.” Rin’s lips parted, baring his sharpened teeth that marked his blood-clan as he smirked broadly, one corner lifted higher at a teasing angle.

Makoto wasn’t sure what to make of the knowing look on his friend’s face but he settled for relief that safety and rest lied somewhere ahead.


	2. Rest

“Ugh, Rin! We’ve been walking forever! I’m too tired to keep going like this.”

Rin lifted the corner of his upper lip in judgment as he glanced over at his exhausted, human friend. Makoto, the once proud cavalryman in training had been reduced to a whining child as he hung his head in exhaustion. Rin had to admit though, Makoto looked far past mere dishevelment with the mud dried into his hair and clothes, the missing pieces of his uniform, and the way his feet dragged weakly through the dirt. How could humans be so strong and yet so weak?

Sighing audibly, Rin stopped walking and cast his eyes around their terrain to find a spot to rest. Makoto paused at his side, the human’s huff of relief amusing to him.

Sharp, crimson eyes swept over the trees that loomed around the path, the trunks swirled in soft spirals before shooting high to the tall canopy of the forest, then giving way to branches covered in tufts of lush, green leaves. Everything around them looked much the same, no indication except the path to indicate where they came from. But sound could guide him. Tuning out the noise of Makoto fidgeting under his heavy uniform, Rin’s long pointed ears twitched as he zeroed in on the sound he had been taught to seek out at a very young age.

“There’s a small stream over this way. Follow me,” Rin nodded in the direction before turning off the path, trusting Makoto to stay right behind him. “I’ll move up stream a bit to refill our canteens. You can rinse yourself off because you look like a dirty street urchin under that uniform.”

“Ah! I look that bad?! And you were going to let me walk right into the elven city like this?!”

Rin didn’t bother to glance back at his friend but he knew the groaning sound accompanied a tired, exasperated face. Riling Makoto up was never difficult and always entertaining. Rin couldn’t help but chuckle in response as he replied in his usual teasing lilt.

“What, you were hoping to use your handsome human looks to persuade them for temporary shelter?”

Makoto stumbled and stuttered over unintelligible sounds before he could force out a reply. “N-no! Because showing up a total wreck is rude, Rin! What would they think of me?”

“…That you’re on the run and need help?” Rin answered matter-of-factly as he weaved between the trees and closer to the sound of gently moving water.

“Ugh, let’s just get to the water. I need to take my boots off.”


	3. Unexpected

Rin’s boots were laced together, thrown over a tree branch to dry after being scrubbed clean of mud and other unmentionables. Carefully tucked inside each boot were his belt and other personal effects, safe from any spying eyes that may become too curious. On the same branch hung his brown, leather pants and cream-colored tunic as they dried quickly in the warm spring air.

The water was pleasantly lukewarm to the touch from the bright sunlight that illuminated the creek, no dense forest canopy growing over the water’s path to dim the rays. The water in the forest was crisp and clean, free from the pollutants often found in slow flowing streams around the large human cities. The purity was stereotypical of any elven community, the reverence shown to nature and the feeling of elven magic sparking against Rin’s senses told him that this land was protected.

Cupping both of his hands together, he splashed his face with water one last time. Rin finally felt clean and refreshed, body washed and clear of the sweat that had stuck to his skin for hours. He had waded out of the shallow water and back to his clothes when he heard a sound. A rustle of leaves, the crack of twigs, the steady fall of someone’s footsteps. They sounded nearby but the pace was not moving in any grave hurry.

His eyes skimmed over the tree line as he threw his tunic on over his naked body, the fabric reaching mid-thigh without the belt to cinch the shirt around his hips. Rin listened again to the foot falls. Single person. Quiet, but not necessarily trying to be stealthy. No indication of a threat. Still, Rin hesitated to call out, worried about drawing the wrong attention to himself when half-naked and his only weapons shoved inside a boot just barely out of reach.

Rin watched a solitary figure step out of the tree line, only a few yards away from where he stood. Rin went unnoticed as the new arrival scanned the waterline in the opposite direction, seemingly looking for something. A sense of familiarity in his gut, Rin stepped out from behind the safety of the tree laden with his other clothes to inspect further. The individual’s towering height and impressively broad shoulders were atypical for a _Jyō’kurii_ elf, to whom this forest belonged. At first glance, this suggested he might be a human who had lost his way. But then Rin caught sit of the slightly pointed ears under softly mused hair of pure black.

He had to blink a few times to be sure but he _recognized_ that man. Rin’s eyes widen as the familiar name fell unbidden from his lips.

“Sousuke?”


	4. Reunion

_He vanished again._ Sousuke let out a low sigh as his upper lip curled just slightly. Really, he should have been more worried about his ward’s constant habit of disappearing. Despite the general safety of the expansive forest belonging to the _Jyō’kurii_ , it could not be ignored that within just a few days’ travel lied a major city belonging to a human kingdom – a people that could not be trusted. That alone was enough risk to any lone, wondering elf. Of course, this was no mere elf strolling completely alone through the forest. It was a _prince_. Even as a younger son who had little chance of inheritance, he would still be quite the tempting prey for a ransom, among other things.

As the primary body-guard for said prince with a case of wanderlust, Sousuke knew he should have been more worried. However, he had been sent out on this errand of prince-retrieval on so numerous of occasions that it became something between a bore and a good excuse to leave the city for a walk. Thankfully he had always managed to find the prince somewhere along the river banks, either in the peaceful setting of the calm creek or the wider, more powerful river from which it was an off-shoot. Sticking to the waterline guaranteed his success every time. In the slim chance that Sousuke would not happen upon the prince in these expected areas, at that point there would be real cause for worry.

Sousuke stepped out of the tree line and glanced upriver, his eyes slowly scanning the opposite embankment for any sign of recent visitation. There had been no sign of the prince yet but it was still early in his search. He figured if he just followed the creek downstream he’d likely come across his ward within the hour. Plenty of time for a leisurely walk for Sousuke to enjoy a little solitude.

There was a soft rustle of leaves that brought him back to the present. No longer merely appreciating the scenery, Sousuke stood stock-still as he kept his eyes affixed to the other side of the creek, not wanting to give any indication that he was aware of the noise. The sound may have been a woodland creature nearing the water to quench its thirst or, what he thought was more likely, it could be a visitor. It was no heavy-footed human soldier, he could tell that much. The step was too light, too careful, and it had completely stopped. Like he was being watched.

 “Sousuke?”

His name floated to his attentive ears, the whisper coming from his right no more than a few yards away. That voice. Through his bones reverberated a sense of familiarity, though he couldn’t place why.

Sousuke turned his head and saw a _To’tsurii_ elf, distinguishable by his shock of beautiful red hair, prominently pointed ears, and sharp, cat-like eyes. The sharpened teeth he could spot from even that distance signified the elf’s warrior status. But then his attention turned immediately to his state of half-dress, his modesty seemingly only covered by the length of tunic while the rest of his clothing hung on the nearby tree branch.

His mind should have immediately assessed the danger-level of this unexpected visitor. (Thankfully he would have come up with none, judging by the lack of weaponry on the nearly bare elf.) Instead his eyes widened in recognition as he felt a tightening in his chest that hadn’t been there in years.

He _knew_ that elf.

“Rin?”


	5. 5 Years

The woods were peaceful. There was a light breeze that carried through the trees’ branches, lending the gentle sound of rustling leaves to the occasional chirp of an exotic bird and the bubbling flow of the steady flowing water. As calm and serene as the air around them was, Rin found his heart hammering against his ribcage and a turbulent sea of emotions driving it harder up to his throat.

Sousuke was not approaching him, the other elf appearing frozen in his spot. Those bright teal eyes wide and locked with his own. Rin had an irrational fear that the man would flee from him, disappearing once again from Rin’s life for another five long years. He knew it was a baseless worry. He had not been abandoned by Sousuke. The woodland elf had a journey that he could only take alone, while Rin had responsibilities of his own to see done. The parting, as difficult as it was, was mutual. And so they parted. Rin could easily recall the ache within his heart, heavy with reluctance and deep, unspoken affection, when he last laid eyes on his friend.

And now, after so long, it began to beat once more.

“Sousuke,” Rin whispered again.

He knew his voice, even softened by emotion, carried over to the other man. Sousuke’s chest expanded and deflated, the heavy sigh almost audible to Rin’s sensitive ears. Emboldened, Rin continued forward, scarcely feeling the uneven ground beneath his bare feet. His focus was given only to the face of the man he had longed to see for many years. Sousuke was older, stronger. His jaw was sharp and square, all traces of baby fat long removed. And yet he appeared somehow more withdrawn than Rin could ever recall seeing. Still, his eyes were still gentle and alert.

Rin’s slow steps took him to within an arm’s reach of the tall, dark elf. Neither moving to initiate contact, but neither retreating.

“You are back with the _Jyō’kurii_ , Sousuke?”

“I am.” Sousuke’s voice was soft and low, the sound sweet in Rin’s ears and he felt a familiar tremor in his chest.

“I thought you would not return here,” Rin explained quietly. “I… had been looking for you. I’ve been to the human cities. But I had not thought to return to these lands after so long.”

Sousuke nodded in understanding but made no move to explain. Rin could see it in his eyes. There were still too many scars Sousuke bore, shallowly hidden under his skin and too raw to dig out. Rin wished for nothing more than to take the pain of his dearest friend away.

“I’ve missed you, Sousuke.”

Rin’s heart clenched tightly at the sight of a small, hesitant smile that spread across the _Jyō’kurii_ elf’s face. Sousuke looked almost relieved to hear those words.

“And I you, Rin.”


	6. Fireflies

Under the heavy weight of what was left of his armor and the many days spent hastily trekking across the vast kingdoms of man towards the lands of elves, Makoto’s body had passed the point of exhaustion. He could feel the soreness in every toe on his abused feet, the strain in his shoulders and back from the bulk of steel and thick leather protection that had weighed down on his body. It may have been less than a week since his journey had started yet it seemed as though it had been ages since he had last felt civilized.

It was with relish that Makoto removed the hefty materials from his body, strewn haphazardly at the riverbank, forgotten in favor of the crystal blue waters of the elven river. Striding into the gently flowing waters in naught but his small clothes he felt a small kindling of child-like delight, just enough to bring a smile to his face. The water caressed his weary muscles and weathered skin, gradually rinsing days’ worth of sweat, dirt, and debris from his body/ Makoto finally felt as himself again.

Choosing to ignore the prickling of hopelessness and distress that itched beneath his skin, Makoto swallowed the lump in his throat and instead concentrated on bathing. He reminded himself that he was in peaceful territory, no hint of violence or threat for many miles around, and this was no time to give into despair. His skin flushed a healthy pink from the scrubbing, his hands finally clean and hair unmatted as he made himself presentable. With only the sounds of birds chirping, leaves rustling, and the feeling of warm sunlight on his back he could almost convince himself his act of dishonor had not even happened.

Makoto had straightened his posture, prepared to drag the majority of his affects into the river for a long-overdue cleansing, when something small and twinkling crossed his vision. It was there for just a moment before it flickered away, not near enough time to discern its identity. Makoto blinked a few times, just to be sure his vision was not failing him due to exhaustion, injury, or hunger. He studied the blue ripples of the small river, his eyes following the flowing movement of the water as it continued downstream.

No, his eyesight was fine.

_Fireflies?_ He wondered. Though it was much too early in the day for them to be out. Perhaps it had just been a reflection of sunlight that his fatigued mind misinterpreted.

Just as quickly as that thought formed in his mind, another small twinkle of light fluttered in front of him, no bigger than a single drop of water. A tiny fleck of starlight.

With a soundless gasp Makoto reached out a careful hand and tried to grasp the speck of light, only for it to disappear just the same as the last. Before he could even drop his hand or feel a twinge of disappoint, more appeared. They hovered over the river and its embankment, appearing like starlight behind diminishing clouds. Twinkling, they reflected light against the water, casting an ethereal glow all around where Makoto stood. He watched as they flowed with the river’s current, moving downstream before flickering out of existence.

His eyes scanned the scene, soft and unafraid. Even in his ignorance, Makoto knew there was nothing to fear. He stepped further into the water, the washing of his clothing and armor no longer at the forefront of his mind. Turning from the sight of the lights flickering out downstream, he instead faced upstream where the tiny stars seemed to twinkle into existence, all wafting lazily through the air toward him.

“Beautiful,” he murmured, a small smile growing on his face.

Unable to help himself, he decided to push against the water’s current and wade further upstream, into the swirling mass of little lights. Makoto’s cheeks bunched under his eyes as his smile broadened, the first true smile since his journey began five long, grueling days before.

“Just so beautiful,” he repeated, his voice stronger than before, as his hand reached out to watch the lights swirl in the air around his arm.

Makoto had almost missed the small gasp of surprise. He had almost convinced himself it was his imagination. But the sudden disappearance of the little stars left him standing alone in the middle of the river, his eyes searching for explanation.

_There_ , his eyes found the slender form of a young man, waded slightly into the river up to his knees. Silky, midnight dark hair. Pale, luminescent skin. Delicately pointed ears. Eyes bluer than any water Makoto had ever seen in his life.

A _Jyō’kurii_ an elf.


	7. Beautiful

A _Jyō’kurii_ an elf. Standing just far enough into the river for the water to reach his knees. His thin leggings were soaked through but his tunic was pulled up and tied around his waist. Makoto noticed the shoes tossed behind him on the embankment alongside a full-length cloak, no weapons or gear to be seen, which the soldier in him checked for simply out of habit. But it was the elf’s face that stole his attention the most. High cheek bones, delicately curved nose, pointed chin, small mouth with pouty lips, and those eyes.

Makoto had never seen such eyes.

He wasn’t sure how long he stood there, rudely gaping at the elf that he had obviously just interrupted. The elf’s eyes were still wide in surprise but he remained still and silent. Brought back to the moment with a few quick blinks of those sapphire eyes, Makoto felt his face turn an embarrassing shade of red as his mouth fumbled with getting an apology out.

“I-I’m sorry! I-I didn’t know you were – I didn’t know _anyone_ was – that is, I’m sorry for-!”

“Why…” the elf interrupted, bringing Makoto’s stuttering to an end. His voice was lower and smoother than Makoto anticipated. “Why are you naked?”

“Wha-?” Makoto started, frozen for just a moment before he glanced down at himself. Clad in only his small clothes, the clear water of the river hardly covered what was left of hid modesty.

What was bizarre, however, was the surge of mortification that rushed through Makoto’s body at the thought of being indecent before another man. He had been part of the king’s military long enough to set aside the concept of privacy, forced to adapt to a new social norm of disrobing, bathing, and sleeping in close quarters with other men. And slowly, Makoto had acclimated. His body and his personal space had not felt like something private to himself in so long.

Yet, standing in the elven river in his small clothes, in front of only one single stranger, felt intimate and inappropriate.

A strangled, “sorry!” burst out of Makoto’s mouth before he lowered his body further into the river. Not satisfied until the water splashed around the flushed skin of his neck, his large body folded under the water’s surface to keep him low. Flustered and off balance, Makoto hid his face in his hands, rubbing his forehead and cheeks as if he could will away the blush that had spread across his skin.

“M-my apologies! You see, I have been travelling for days and hadn’t the opportunity to wash before now. A-and I didn’t want to enter the elven city looking the way I…”

A subtle sound, like warm, sweet honey, just barely audible, cut through his words. Makoto paused, his body stilling as well. Was the elf… laughing at him? Peeking over his hands and back towards the embankment where the elf was still standing, Makoto confirmed that yes, the elf was indeed laughing at him. The nearly blank look that had been on his face was gone, replaced by a slight squinting of those sapphire eyes, rounding out of the high apples of his cheeks, and his prim mouth pulled to the sides in a small, amused smile. And that sound, the warm chuckle escaping from behind the hand the elf had raised to his mouth, was most certainly laughter at Makoto’s expense.

 _By the great mother_ , Makoto thought, _the elf was beautiful._


	8. Jealous

It was with no lack of amusement that Rin smirked at Sousuke, his sharp teeth on display between the lopsided stretch of his lips. Sousuke’s large, formidable stature and neutral stony expressions that made his presence daunting and unapproachable were practically neutralized when he turned his widened eyes swiftly away from Rin, a faint expression of surprise and embarrassment caught on his face before he could hide it. Rin redressed in the open air with no sense of shame over his naked flesh, his sharp eyes focused on his diverted companion. He wondered if it was more the human preoccupation with sex that Sousuke undoubtedly encountered in his travels or the _Jyō’kurii_ sense of propriety he grew up with that caused the entertaining reaction. He didn’t used to be so shy when they were youths together, stumbling and tussling about as they dreamed of grand worldwide adventures.

Sousuke cleared his throat, his eyes remaining cast aside as Rin fastened his leather pants and wound his belt around his slender waist.

“So where is this human companion you spoke of? Surely you did not allow a stranger to stumble around _Jyō’kurii_ lands by himself.”

“He’s just down river from here,” Rin replied, adorning the last of his clothing by tying the laces of his boots around his ankles and returning his small blades to their hidden compartments within his clothing.

“As dirty a human as there ever was,” Rin continued, unable to help the fond chuckle that escaped him as he thought about his friend. The elf warrior finished his redressing with a quiver and bow slung over his head to lay against his back, only a few arrows left inside the delicately hand-painted leather. “But quite possibly the kindest as well.”

Sousuke hummed, a low vibration from his throat, as he considered this information. His intense eyes studied the direction indicated by Rin’s words towards where his travelling companion was said to be, eyes focused and alert rather than simply avoiding gazing upon his friend.

“Is he…?”

“My lover?” A wolfish grin grew from the previously subdued smile, revealing all of his teeth sharped to an intimidating point, a symbol of his warrior status of his kind. The grin was joined with a knowing raise of one eyebrow as Rin nudged Sousuke’s leg with his knee as he moved to stand at his side. “No, just a good friend who found himself in quite the heap of trouble.”

Another low hum of reflection was Sousuke’s only response as he stuffed his hands into the pockets of his lavishly embroidered tunic of deep blues and greens, colors of the _Jyō’kurii_. Once again Rin found that his long-lost companion failed to meet eyes with eyes, Sousuke instead appearing to be glaring down river.

Sousuke may have grown into quite the brooding, impenetrable wall of ice on the exterior but, to Rin, the warm and loyal heart underneath had not changed a bit. He could almost sense it beating beneath the thick chest of the tall elf at his side.

Rin would say that he couldn’t help himself as he whispered a teasing “don’t be jealous” in the air between them.

The fast whip of his head, the slightly gaping mouth, and the telltale sign of a rosy hue high on strong cheekbones were amusing, but nothing compared to the grunting sound Sousuke made when he found himself unable to deny the accusation. Rin smiled wide and laughed, a warmth filling him that hadn’t been there in years, alongside the subtle tingle of potential.

Oh how he had missed his other half, how he had missed Sousuke.


End file.
